


Chosen Family

by Chargefire



Category: Granblue Fantasy (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, Genderfluid Captain (Granblue Fantasy), Non-binary character, Spaghetti Syndrome Spoilers, saw a theory that was like "hey what if Grace was grandjeeta's mother?" and decided to run with it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-24
Updated: 2020-02-24
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:21:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,150
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22870924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chargefire/pseuds/Chargefire
Summary: The Captain of the Grandcypher had always hoped to meet their mother one day, but... sometimes, the truth is a terrible thing.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 8





	Chosen Family

**Author's Note:**

> Content warning: physical violence from a character's mother.

Grace peered at the information she had requested; one was on the girl with blue hair who went by "Lyria", and the other was on the young adult with light brown hair who went by the two names "Djeeta" and "Gran" interchangeably. 

She looked over the documents, noting several details that stood out to her: the captain of the Grandcypher was 25 years old, had lived on Zinkenstill since they were a baby, and had a certain famous skyfarer for a father. Together, these facts painted an intriguing picture.

After all, Grace had once intimately known that famous skyfarer, and then had dropped the resulting baby off at Zinkenstill over 25 years ago. She hadn't wanted to take care of a child, deeming it beneath her, but the easiest option of simply tossing the thing overboard had been discarded. She had spent all that effort carrying it to term and then giving birth. It would have been a waste to simply kill it outright. 

She smiled. How interesting! Yes, she was definitely overdue to visit.

* * *

For the captain of the Grandcypher, Port Breeze felt like coming home more than visiting Zinkenstill ever did. Zinkenstill had been... okay. They had been cared for, and tolerated, but Zinkenstill had also been where they died. It wasn't a fun place to visit. In contrast, Port Breeze was where they found the Grandcypher and really began their adventure.

Gran was really glad they had met everyone. On the Grandcypher, they were the Captain, not “that abandoned child”. No one told them they couldn’t change names like one might a hat; back on Zinkenstill, they had gotten the frustrating and isolating reactions of “why can’t you just pick one?”. Some days they were Gran, and others, they were Djeeta. It all depended on how they felt that day. And to make sure everyone knew which name to call them, they had decided that as Gran, they wore pants, and as Djeeta they wore skirts - though they didn’t think their gender was ever fully male or female. 

Today, they were exploring areas out of the main town. Vyrn was eating at his favorite food place in Port Breeze with Katalina. Lyria had eaten earlier, and privately, Gran was absolutely sick of that restaurant. Every single time the Grandcypher crew went to Port Breeze, Vyrn wanted to go to "that place with that amazing apple pie". Gran planned to go to a different food place later, but for now, they were enjoying the soft breeze in the air. 

A whistle of displaced air was the only warning the two received, and Gran instinctively tackled Lyria to the ground.

"Ooh, nice job," a feminine voice praised. Gran shot to their feet, drawing Tetrastreamer and planting themself in front of Lyria. 

Their attacker was a pale woman with blonde hair and a prosthetic right arm. Gran tensed further; this person's appearance was highly reminiscent of the ruthless woman known as Grace, from what the former Society members and Yodarha had told them.

"Who are you?" Lyria asked, frowning and puffing up like a kitten trying to be intimidating as she stood up.

"I'm Grace," she said calmly, still smiling wide.

"Yodarha's former disciple," Gran said.

"The world sure is small, sometimes. You know him? He taught me a lot. Anyway, I'm not here to talk about boring old men like him - I'm here to meet my grown up child!"

Gran blinked in surprise. "What?"

"I'm your mom! I kind of forgot about you when I dumped you on Zinkenstill, but can you blame me? It's such a boring place."

Lyria gasped. "You're..."

Anger grew in Gran. They had hoped to find out the fate of their mother, one day, and had hoped desperately that she would be kind and apologetic for having to give Gran up as a child. 

Grace was none of those. Grace was every fear and then some.

But there was also the possibility...

"I don't believe you," Gran accused. "You could just be some random woman."

Gran hoped desperately that their mother wasn't this murderer.

"That's so cruel..." Grace shook her head, and then began to elaborate on the day she had left Gran on Zinkenstill; which house she had gone to, and which couple she had pushed a baby upon. 

Zinkenstill was such a backwater that the only way to get that information would have been to ask the villagers (which would not have been fruitful, protective of Gran as they were), or to have been there in person. It wasn't like Gran had spread that information around to anyone else, either. Vyrn knew, but he would have said something if someone had asked him those questions.

Their expression turned disgusted, and they found they couldn't form words to express just how awful a person they thought Grace was.

"Anyway, I'm a little curious how you'd react to seeing this sweetheart get cut up to ribbons!" Grace suddenly said with an unchanging smile, and made to raise her right arm.

Gran jolted, eyes widening in fear for Lyria.

"No! You'll kill Gran!" Lyria yelled desperately.

"Really?" Grace sounded disappointed. "Hm... the dossier I asked for did say you two had a strange bond... Okay, I guess you can live.”

Fear still gripped Gran's chest. It was almost painful. "Alive" left a lot of room for maiming and general injury.

"Let's make it a game. Can you last five minutes against me, Gran?" Grace asked maliciously.

Gran quickly snapped off the spell Miserable Mist, lowering Grace's defensive and offensive capabilities, rather than wait for her to make the first move. 

"Lyria, go get Yodarha!" Gran ordered.

"Make sure to bring back a healer! Your captain will need one," Grace told Lyria, and then raised her arm to attack her own child.

Gran dodged the first attack, but the second cut deeply into their leg. It was such a clean slice that for a moment, no blood appeared - and then it began to well up and trickle down their calf.

Lyria raised her hands and cast Healing Waters on Gran, her expression anxious, and then took off as fast as she could. The cut on Gran’s leg healed as Lyria sprinted away.

Gran calmed a little with Lyria out of immediate danger, and turned their attention back to Grace. With a surety that came from practice, they called forth the power of the tetra-elements, mixing water and wind to create the spell Icy Wind. The spell’s chill lowered Grace’s elemental attack.

Grace’s wires flashed forward, glinting in the air. Again, they managed to dodge the first attack, but the second and third slashed into Gran’s skin, drawing more blood. 

All the while, Grace smiled.

* * *

Lyria ran through the streets of Port Breeze, even though her sides hurt, and it was hard to breathe. Finally! She came to the restaurant where Katalina, Farrah, and Vyrn were eating outside at. Katalina’s eyes widened as Lyria came to a stop. Lyria huffed, folding over and placing her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath. She felt like she was going to throw up.

Finally, she wheezed out: “Gran! In trouble!”

“Where?” Katalina stood up, hand flying to her sword and expression tightening. 

Lyria turned to the side, pointing to where she had run from. “That way- out of town. Grace- Yodarha’s student-”

“What!? That murderer attacked Gran?” Katalina asked in horror. The life-link between Lyria and her captain pained her at times; that she could lose two of her precious people in one blow was a bitter thought. 

Lyria nodded, coughing from exertion. 

“Farrah! Stay here with Lyria and then regroup at the Grandcypher when Lyria’s recovered. Vyrn! Go to the Grandcypher and get Yodarha, _now,_ ” she ordered.

“Yes, ma’am!” Farrah saluted unconsciously. Katalina decided now wasn’t the time to remind Farrah that neither of them were in the Erste military anymore. 

“I’ll hurry!” Vyrn promised, and flew off. With that, Katalina jogged toward Gran’s location. However much she wanted to sprint, she needed to pace herself, or she would be in no shape to fight. 

_Captain… Hold on, please!_

She grit her teeth and sped up a little bit.

* * *

“Not bad, I guess,” Grace said with a shrug, standing over Gran’s crumpled, bloody form. “I mean, you’re definitely better than most skyfarers out there. But you’re still kind of pathetic. Next time I expect a better showing, okay?”

Gran cracked open an eye hatefully, and then tried to knock Grace off her feet with a kick. Grace dodged backward, shaking her head. “I think you need a visible motivator! Something that you’ll see everyday.” She raised her hand and cut the wires into Gran’s cheek. Blood welled up as a line opened from their cheekbone to their jawbone. She raised her hand again, and then again once more. 

Gran grit their teeth, refusing to cry out from the pain. What burned was the knowledge that Grace had surely been holding back - Gran knew those wires could cut completely through skin and bone like they were butter. They had seen it.

“I’m looking forward to hearing more of your adventures, but I have to get going now. It was so nice to meet you again, Gran!”

What a monster.

Adrenaline faded, and the pain intensified. Everything seemed distant…

* * *

Yodarha surged forward, leaving Vyrn struggling to keep up. To his surprise, as he ran onto the deck of the Grandcypher, he saw Farrah panicking while holding an unconscious Lyria.

“What happened?” he demanded. Visually, she seemed fine. No bruises or cuts anywhere.

“She just collapsed!” Farrah said, sounding like she was close to tearing her own hair out.

Vyrn gasped when he saw Lyria. “Oh no! Gramps, it’s from the life-link! Gran must’ve been knocked out!”

“So she’s okay?”

“Um… well, mostly… she’ll be okay if Gran is okay!” Vyrn said.

Farrah inhaled sharply, and then held her breath. She began to count: one, two, three. Exhale. One, two, three. Inhale. One, two, three. Exhale.

She calmed herself down, and nodded at Yodarha and Vyrn. “I’ll take her to her room,” she said, still sounding a little shaky from anxiety, but ready with a plan. 

Yodarha’s head dipped down, and he made a fist. He exhaled. “Take me to where the captain is.”

“Follow me!” Vyrn said, and the two set off.

* * *

To Katalina’s dismay, Gran was laying on the ground, surrounded by blood.

She cast Heal on them, sighing in relief as most of the cuts disappeared. However, the largest and most gruesome did not; on Gran's face, open bone grew back together, but not the muscle and skin.

It would be a few minutes before Katalina could cast Heal again. She quickly looked around for Grace, but couldn't find her. Katalina hoped Grace had left, and wasn't about to launch a surprise attack. She picked up the rainbow sword by the hilt, and placed it in the scabbard on Gran's belt. Then she knelt down to grab Gran themself, carrying them in their arms.

She couldn't carry the captain all day, but she could definitely make it back to the Grandcypher.

As she headed back, almost running, townspeople gasped at the blood and injuries, making way if they saw the two. 

"Yodarha!" Katalina called as the white-clad figure suddenly came into view.

"Katalina," he acknowledged. Behind him, Vyrn appeared, struggling to catch up.

"Wait up, gramps!" Vyrn called. He faltered for a moment when he saw Gran's unconscious form. "... Oh, no…" He seemed unable to look away from their face.

"Don't worry, Vyrn," Katalina said, more cheerfully than she felt. "Gran will be fine. Ah! I can cast my healing spell again. Hold on." She concentrated on Gran, calling on curative magics. This time, the larger cuts disappeared, save for the one marring their face; only the muscle knit back together.

Katalina grimaced. Leaving the wound open so long was risking infection. If only her Heal was stronger…!

"Then I'll be off. I _will_ find her," Yodarha promised.

Katalina nodded. "Be careful, Yodarha." She turned her head to Vyrn as Yodarha began to run. "Vyrn, can you go ahead to the Grandcypher and tell them I have the captain?"

"O-okay! I'm on it!" Vyrn said, rallying himself. He took off.

Poor Vyrn. Katalina hoped this wouldn't be too scarring for him; emotionally, he reminded her of a young child. 

Katalina shook off those thoughts and began to follow Vyrn.

* * *

Katalina came into view of the Grandcypher. Her arms were very sore now, but it was a relief to almost be back. A small crowd was standing in front of the walkway: Eustace, Rosetta, and Vyrn. Upon seeing Katalina approach, Eustace nearly broke into a sprint, stopping in front of her with wide eyes.

"They're okay?" he asked, gathering Gran in his arms. Katalina sighed in relief; her own arms _ached_. 

"Yes, they're alive," Katalina confirmed, though Eustace had already seen the rise and fall of their chest.

Eustace exhaled. He wasn't a man who showed emotions very overtly, but it was plain that he was deeply relieved. 

Rosetta approached, shaking her head. "Oh, dear…" She cast a healing spell on the captain, and the cut on their face finally closed up, leaving a jagged scar from their cheekbone to jaw. 

Unfortunately, if wounds weren't healed quickly or well enough (by magic or potion), they would scar.

Katalina tried not to feel too morose about that. If she had been a better healer… 

But the captain was alive. That was something to be glad about.

Gran stirred in Eustace's arms, jolting awake. They flailed for a moment, nearly smacking Eustace with an errant arm, but calmed upon realizing they were no longer in danger.

"Eustace?" they asked, and then looked around. "Can I-"

Eustace lowered Gran to the ground, helping steady them. "You're okay?" he asked, looking them over closely.

"Um, yeah. Thanks." Gran looked around again. "Huh… so how did I get from outside Port Breeze to being next to the Grandcypher?"

Vyrn swooped down, launching themself at Gran with tears in his eyes. He hugged their chest, and Gran paused for a moment before curling their hands around Vyrn. He was too small to properly hug, but this was close enough. "Stupid! Don't worry us like that!"

Gran kind of wanted this hug to be over already, but was going to let Vyrn continue until he wanted to stop. "I'm sorry for worrying you, but it's not like I went out looking for trouble…"

Vyrn held on for a moment longer before sniffing and disengaging. "I guess not…"

"Ah, to answer your question, Captain, I carried you here," Katalina replied.

"Wow. That's impressive!" Gran said, eyes widening. They didn't think they could carry someone that far. "Thank you. Oh, but- Lyria! Is she okay?"

Rosetta laid a hand on Gran's shoulder and squeezed reassuringly for a moment. "She's fine. Farrah told me she caught Lyria before she hit the floor. She's watching her now."

Eustace pulled out a small bottle of red liquid and handed it to Gran. "Drink this."

They grimaced, not a fan of how potions tasted, but knew that they should drink it anyway. Curative magic was great at healing injuries, but faltered when it came to infections. Strong Clarity spells could help, but not always. Potions and elixirs were the best bet.

They uncorked it and drank quickly, nearly gagging at the taste. 

"Thanks," they said, handing the empty bottle back to Eustace. He would probably want to rinse it out and then reuse it for another potion. 

Eustace nodded.

"Gran!" Lyria called, running down the walkway. She smiled wide in relief. "You're okay!"

"And so are you!" Gran said with a smile.

"Oh, no… your face," Lyria said, becoming despondent. 

Gran felt their face with their hands. "Is something wron-" They paused at the texture. "Oh. A scar?"

"It's not bad," Eustace offered.

"Sorry, Gran. The cut was very deep… I couldn't heal it all the way," Katalina said.

"It's okay. I mean, the one on my chest is way worse."

Lyria's face fell, and Gran felt like a heel for reminding her of when they died.

"So… what exactly happened, Captain?" Rosetta asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Ah… Grace - Yodarha's former student - showed up… and…" Gran trailed off. Was she really their mother? It seemed terribly likely. 

"How could a mother do that to her own child?" Lyria demanded, and Gran grimaced. Well, that was out of the bag.

"Mother?" Rosetta asked sharply. "Your _mother_ attacked you?"

"What? No way!" Vyrn squawked.

Eustace frowned. "I thought your mother was dead."

"No… she abandoned me on Zinkenstill. I thought she was too young or too sick to take care of me, but… actually she's a monster! Wow!" Gran laughed incredulously. 

"But why?" Rosetta asked.

"Rosetta, please. Do you really need that information?" Katalina cut in. "Besides - we should go back up Yodarha."

"She's really strong. We need to go help him," Gran agreed.

"You need to rest," Eustace said, narrowing his eyes.

Gran looked at Eustace, gaze level. "I'm fine now. I know you're worried, but I trust you and everyone else to have my back."

Eustace held their gaze for a moment before nodding back. "All right. Let's go, then."

The rest of the group agreed, and everyone hurried back to the outskirts of Port Breeze. 

* * *

Yodarha was standing away from the scattered blood where Grace and Gran had fought.

"Yodarha!" Gran yelled. He turned.

"Captain. And friends." He paused, looking downward. "She was gone before I even got here, it seems…"

"You'll find her next time," Lyria encouraged. Vyrn nodded.

Gran hesitated for a moment, but then asked: "Did you know?"

Yodarha's brow furrowed. "Know what?"

"Is she really my mother?" 

Yodarha was stunned by this question. "...what? What gave you that idea?"

"She did. She said so before she attacked me!" Gran was hoping Yodarha would say Grace had been lying.

"... I don't know. She could be. You two look a little similar. I'm sorry I can't answer for sure."

"Gran…" Lyria said, trailing off.

Gran closed their eyes, overwhelmed for a moment. 

Yodarha sighed. "If she is your mother, then I want you to know, Captain, that the weight of her sins does not fall on your shoulders. You have had no involvement in her killings. Don't beat yourself up about it."

"Wow, you're so wise, Gramps," Vyrn said, and Yodarha waved a hand at him dismissively. 

"Even so… I'll help you," Gran promised. "She has to be stopped. That's it." Beside them, Eustace gave a small but encouraging nod. 

Yodarha nodded as well.

"Let's head on back. It's been a long day, and we all could use some rest," Katalina suggested.

Gran nodded, still troubled, but followed. As they walked, they brought a hand up to touch their new scar.

_A reminder, huh..._

**Author's Note:**

> I doubt Grace is actually the Captain's mother, but I really couldn't stop thinking about how awful that would be...
> 
> Anyway, you ever write something and realize you've written a theme without even meaning to? I wrote this fic and then realized I had written "found family is always better than an abusive biological family". 
> 
> To anyone else who grew up with a terrible parent or parents: you didn't deserve it. None of it. Your real family is the people who treat you right. The people who care about you and care about how they treat you. Take care.


End file.
